The State Duma on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed in a first reading a contentious bill that would radically toughen penalties for those who offend believers' feelings or desecrate relics and places of worship.

President Vladimir Putin defended Russia's treatment of homosexuals in Amsterdam, where 1,000 gay rights activists waved pink and orange balloons and blasted out dance music to press home their protest.

The Justice Ministry, responsible for overseeing nongovernmental organizations in Russia, claimed that the Golos election watchdog committed an administrative offense by not labeling itself a "foreign agent" despite being engaged in political activity and having received foreign funding.

The White House has urged Moscow to do more to restrain saber-rattling North Korea, but despite historically strong ties with its nuclear-armed neighbor, Russia does not have special influence that could help defuse growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, experts said Tuesday.

A fresh delivery of Russian gas oil has reached a government-controlled port in Syria this month, according to shipping sources and tracking data, adding to a string of cargoes that have flowed into the war-ravaged country this year.